


glass shoes☆red shoes and the seven dwarfs

by LuluofLemons



Category: Red Shoes and the 7 Dwarfs (2019)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Comedy, F/M, Glass Slippers (Cinderella), Magic, Marriage Proposal, Mutual Pining, Pining, Romance, We all fell in love with Merlin, poison apple, updates every Friday
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-06
Updated: 2020-06-05
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:28:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 19,002
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23505388
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LuluofLemons/pseuds/LuluofLemons
Summary: "Are they made of glass?"After escaping the castle of the evil queen, her magic shoes now turned glass from red in tow, scullery maid Cinderella seeks the aid of 7 dwarfs to help her defeat the queen and save her friend Snow White.
Comments: 11
Kudos: 49





	1. Prologue

Once upon a time in a land known as Fairy Tale Island, there existed a team of heroes known as the Fearless Seven. All talented, strong and handsome in their own right, the seven princes were known throughout the land for the numerous exploits of rescuing damsels and princess, defeating beasts of terror, and saving entire kingdoms.

That is until they seemingly dropped off the face of the planet.

It has since been a year since the F7 were last seen, and however important they are to the story at hand,(one of them especially)none of them are the true hero of this tale.

No, the true hero of this story is one not a single soul would have thought capable of saving the whole of the White Kingdom. This is the story of how a young girl, a scullery maid to a princess, thwarted an evil queen in her tracks, gained a pair of glass shoes, befriended seven little men, fell in love, and became a princess and heroine of the highest order.

This is the story of Cinderella and The Seven Dwarfs.


	2. how to crash a broom

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So i went image searching and i came up with https://www.zerochan.net/1281949  
> That's basically what I imagine Cinderella looking like.

"Are you really sure about this?" Cinderella reluctantly asked. 

"Of course!" Snow White said to loudly for comfort, and was met with the blonde clamping a hand over her mouth and raising a finger to her own lips.

It was the dead of night, the only lighting available was the white moon, and currently she was helping her best friend, who was a princess, break into her own castle to try and find the king. And into the office of her step-mother Regina no less! 

It had been 2 months since King White had remarried, and suffice to say both Cinderella and Snow White hated the new queen with a fire. Put it simply the only thing attractive about her was her looks, but since those had started to fade, she had started to truly look like the witch she was. 

The only reason the scullery maid was assisting with this madness was out of simple devotion to the princess. They had known each other since they were 13, when Snow White convinced her father to hire her at the castle and save her from a hellish existence from her own step-mother.

She knew all to well the feeling of a having a cruel new mother figure in your life while having a missing father, and while she was glad to assist, she at the moment was proceeding with much more caution then her brunette friend. Regina would have their heads!

"The things you do for friendship," She mentally lamented. 

With that they unfurled two long, thick ropes and tossed them through the opening of an open window. Next was the hard part, actually climbing. While Snow had no problem, being strong as an ox, Cinderella struggled thanks to her dainty limbs caused by years of not exactly eating like a king. 

Eventually the pair made it to the top and caught their bearings on the windowsill before sliding down the ropes. While the princess landed solidly on the ground like a cat, the blonde was lucky enough to land right in the nearby velvet chair on her butt. 

"We made it," Cinderella gasped in relief before she noticed a certain someone was looking off in space. "Snow?" She then looked over the shoulder of her friend to see what the fuss was about and was immediately caught off-guard by a tree sprouting in the middle of the room. What's stranger was that the leaves were paper white!

"This wasn't here before," Snow said confusedly, raising her brow at her friend. "How is a tree growing out of marble?" Cinderella responded in a tone laced with suspicion.

"I don't know, but she must be up to something."

With that they set out about the room in search of clues for what had befallen the king. Snow was propping up the numerous paintings in search of a safe, and Cinderella was tapping all the floorboards in hope one was hollow. This went on until the creaking of the door could be heard along with the light of a lantern, as one of Regina's little bear henchmen came in via broom.

Thankfully the two women were in close proximity, allowing them to take cover under the desk together. For a tense moment, the two held their breath while huddled together, but just when they thought they were in the clear the little bear made a sharp turn and looked back at the rope protruding out of the window.

"Huh, you weren't here before," he said in an oddly adorable voice while coming to fly up to the rope, before turning the light in their basic direction. However, fast reflexes proved yet again to be a god send and they were able to turn to the other side of the table, and eventually the henchmen left, leaving the princess and maid to their mission.

As they went to stand up, Snow hit her head on the bottom side of the desk revealing a trapdoor as a leather-bound journal slid out into her hand. There was a moment of silence as they looked at each other in shock. Did they just find the key to saving the kingdom by accident. Yep. 

They high-fived and both let out a triumphant "Yes!" before laying out the book to reads it's contents.

It started out fairly normal, with a recount of Snow's eighteenth birthday party. Of the day Regina entered their lives. It went on into detail about his marriage to her and how 'perfect' she was. Cinderella was beginning to think they had hit a dead end until a line grabbed her attention.

"Except for Regina's strange looking mirror. There's something not quite right. People around the castle have been disappearing one by one. Is it because of that peculiar mirror?"

The entry then finished, leaving the two reader's vastly enlightened yet confused. Magic mirror? Since when did Regina have one of those? Although this did offer an explanation as to the various missing people. Continuing on, the next passage was even more chilling.

"I saw it with my own eyes. Regina talking to a tree. She must be a witch. I should send Snow away to a safer place along with Cinderella, whom I have heard Regina muttering constantly. "

"Me? Do you think she intended to get rid of me?" Cinderella asked Snow in surprise. "I can't say," the princess responded. "But we were right about her being a witch. Look," she flipped the page, "There's one more before it cuts off."

"My dear Snow and loyal Cinderella, by the time you read this my fate will be uncertain. She's coming for me now. I only hope you can find the Fearless Seven and ask them for help! Apples. The most suspicious of fruits."

The reading ended with Cinderella wide-eyed at the text and Snow with a forlorn look in her eyes. "Oh papa," she whispered, "Where are you?". The servant seeing this dipped down to swiftly embrace her and bring her to a standing position. "Well you heard him. We have to find the Fearless Seven!"

Suddenly the morning bell chimed and Snow looked up at the tree, seemingly entranced as she made her way towards the two red apples hanging on them. "S..Snow? What are you doing?" Cinderella followed her to make sure she did nothing foolish. As they made their way to the tree, something utterly miraculous happened. The apples morphed into a pair of red shoes. Looking at her friend, Snow stood with an entranced look at the shoes, while Cinderella felt something while gazing at them.

They almost felt pervasive. Like they were delving into her mind to find her deepest desires and to take advantage of her. The almost seemed possessed. 

So lost in her inner musings, she was roused when Snow suddenly plucked them from the tree. "Snow what are you doing!" Cinderella cried before gripping the princesses wrists, the brunette only now seeming to realize what she had done. Before anything else could be said, the intimidating sound of clacking heels outside could be heard.

"Regina!" They looked at each other. Cinderella knew what it could mean if they were caught. However, she knew Snow could be much more valuable to the kingdom's future. She needed to stay safe at all costs, being the heir. In a split-second decision, The scullery maid, grabbed the shoes from Snow and pushed her back. "Go," she pleaded. "Get back to your room and I'll cover for you. It's important you stay safe. I'll try to get away and find the Fearless Seven."

"What! No, Ella you can't. Do you know what she'll do to you!"

Cinderella pulled her in for a quick embrace before pushing her back by the shoulders. "I know what she'll do, and that's why as soon as I get the chance I'll book it. Now go, and I'll bring your father back."

Reluctantly, Snow turned to the window and scaled up the rope laving Cinderella. Critically thinking, she deduced the shoes must be important, and seeing as she had no better way to carry them and the fact that she might need her hands, she did the next best thing.

She put them on.

Suddenly a bright, white light engulfed the room as the shoes seemed to change. Sadly the wonder was interrupted as Regina came barreling into the room, looking down in horror at the shoes on Cinderella's feet.

Looking down herself, she saw what the fuss was. The shoes had changed from solid red, to a clear...wait were they made of glass now!

The stuper was broken when the queen screeched. "You..Cinderella...my shoes! GET HER!" Then, by what she assumed was magic, a predatory looking vine came shooting out towards her, causing the servant girl to jump behind the desk for momentary cover, only for the matching chair to be crushed to bits.

She attempted to jump off onto the side only to be met by three more of the bear minions each riding a broom. She ran back again in the opposite direction diving under the vine causing all three bears to crash. Thinking fast she dashed over to one of the currently unoccupied brooms. "Sorry, do you think I could borrow this?"

"Okay" it said in a cute voice. Cinderella genuinely felt bad for the three creatures. They seemed like kind innocent creatures trapped under Regina's thumb. Only one more reason to take her down.

With the go ahead the mounted the broom, and while she got off to a tipsy start, she managed to make her way to the window and shoot off into the distance, narrowly escaping on last vine attack.

******

Elsewhere in the forest, seven princes now turned green dwarfs were slugging on, discussing the need to find a beautiful girl to kiss them, and hopefully return them to their handsome forms. 

All of a sudden a feminine scream rang in the air and a figure on a broom went shooting across the sky in the general direction of their house. 

"What was that," the red-headed one, Hans asked. "Some kind of bird?"

*******

Back at the castle Regina was striding up to her magic mirror, ready to inquire about the girl who continued to be a thorn in her side. Once the mirror finished extending down to her, she asked her question.

"Magic mirror full of wisdom," she said with a scowl before raising her voice. "Whose the fairest in the kingdom!?"

The mirror replied by showing an image of Cinderella on the stolen broom, the now glass slippers on her feet. "The one who wears the glass shoes, Cinderella is the fairest." The mirror then erased the image and his face reappeared. "And side note, wisdom and kingdom don't rhyme."

"Cut the sass! Tell me what happened to change the shoes!" 

The mirror chuckled at the queen's rage and answered. "I guess there are things even you don't know. As you know the red shoes feed off of one's vain desires such as beauty and power, however if the wearer possesses no such desires, the shoes become glass and gain the power to grant any one wish."

"One wish," Regina whispered, the gears turning in her head. She then whipped around to the three bears huddled behind her. "Distribute wanted posters of Cinderella to every town, village, valley, forest and forge in the kingdom and find her!" Once the command was given they scampered off, and the queen slumped in her chair.

"I feel my power draining. I don't have much time, the aging is accelerating," she tugged at her wrinkles. "and only three bumbling bits of kindling for help!"

"Perhaps you should recruit another, someone who stands to gain from your success. How about this fellow." Once again the mirror projected and image, but this time of a most average prince. None the less this peaked Regina's interest. 

Since the moment she had stepped foot in the kingdom, that dirty servant girl had somehow managed to outclass her beauty, and she wouldn't stand for it any longer.

"Interesting," she mused. "Tell me more."

*******

Back at the dwarfs 'castle' hideout, the seven of them had just raced from the forest to investigate the flying figure.

"Hey, over here! Look, look look," Pino, Noki, and Kio called the others over to a dug out line in the dirt. "What is it?" Arthur asked. They followed the line until it connected to a broom stabbed into a tree and a human looking engraving in the leaves.

"I know a lot about silhouette's," The blonde, Jack, stepped forward. "And I think the shape is a witch."

"Let's not jump to conclusions. Yes it could be a witch or...yeah it's a witch." Hans deduced.

"The witch who cursed us! Let's capture her and make her break the spell." Hope coursed through Merlin at the thought. Maybe this could be it. Maybe he wouldn't need a kiss to return to his former self!

They all then heard a groaning sound from the inside of the house, and silently crept towards the door preparing for an assault. Weapons at the ready, Merlin gave Hans a signal to go round back, before the remaining six of the broke down the door and entered.

"En Garde!"Jack yelled. "Wand where I can see it witch!" Merlin demanded, pointing a lighting card at her. They were all expecting a certain something in the figure like green skin or a long nose. What they got though, left them in awe.

Now facing them was the single most beautiful girl any of them had ever seen. With golden blonde hair like the sun, crystal blue eyes the sky could envy, and a gentle expression which maximized her beauty. Even though she was dressed in a tattered brown dress, her elegant glass shoes added simplicity and character. In short, she was an angel. One who could break the curse.

In response the six members of the F7 currently facing her dropped their weapons and simply stared, taking her in while letting out cries of 'wow!' before another voice brought them back to their senses.

"I bake you some revenge," Hans called out and hit the angel over the head with his frying pan, knocking her out, stone cold. There was a moment of silence before Merlin and co. cried out in shock.

"HANS!"


	3. seven dwarfs

Pain. Aching, perverse pain was all Cinderella felt in her head when she came to. What in the world had happened? Okay, rewind.

She had flown full speed from the castle, crashed the broom, landed in a tree before being thrown from it and flying into the window of the nearby house. Next thing she knew six little green....men had come up on her and then she was out. 

Now she was lying on what could only be a bed, seven green blurs above her whispering. Were these the men that had walked in her her earlier? Even though her head was spinning she tried to make out what they were saying.

"Oh, beautiful," someone murmured.

"I didn't know anyone could be so beautiful," Merlin wistfully stated. These words were true. Yes, having gone around fairy tale island saving princesses, he had seen some of the most stunning women imaginable, but the blonde beauty lying in front of him put them all to shame.

"She's the one." He thought, while continuing to gaze in wonder at the girl. "The one who will break the curse. She must be!" 

"How did she end up with us?" Jack asked. Then, the girl started to stir as her head twisted front-word and her eyes cracked open, revealing a peak of blue. In amazement, all seven dwarfs let out an "aww." Cinderella then swiftly sat up with her elbows, causing them to jump back and yelp in surprise.

"What happened?" She groaned, before finally noticing the dwarfs surrounding her, she herself scooting back and gasping. So this is what happened. She was stuck in a house with seven dwarfs, who honestly looked adorable in their own...green way to her.

The one clad in orange to her left stepped forward first, one in blue behind him giving a little wave. "Hello dear lady," He gave a flourish of his hand and winked at her. "Welcome to my home slash command post. I have six roommates but my names on the lease."

"I pay the rent," the blonde one snidely added.

Good. So far, by as much as she could tell they weren't hostile nor were they a band of weirdos camped out in the middle of Risky Rock Forest. For now, all Cinderella could do was be cordial in return. She could assume they had lifted her into the bed, and that to her was a sign of good will.

"Hello," She graciously said with a smile which for some reason unknown to her caused the dwarfs to swoon before the servant girl could continue. "I'm sorry about the whole crashing into your house thing. If I had known I would have...." before the brunette one in blue cut her off.

"There's no need to apologize. We didn't mean to intrude on your nap." He leaned on the bed as the red-head spoke next. "You've been asleep for a a time. If you're hungry I could whip up something simple."

"No, no. I don't want to intrude."" Cinderella held up her hand to stop him. She then attempted to get out of the bed, but stumbled a bit once she stood up fully. Right, she was wearing Regina's shoes. Which now that she was thinking about it, how had they not broken?"

"Are you okay," the brunette dwarf in blue asked as he steadied her by securing her wrist, to which the other six looked at him with disdain. Always the charmer, Merlin was! "Yes, thank you," she smiled before walking over to he mirror to inspect herself for any damage. 

Thankfully her body had miraculously sustained no damage, and no bruising was visible on her face. Although the back of her head was sore, she felt it wasn't enough for a concussion and any mark would be hidden by her hair.

Still just to be safe, she turned to the dwarfs, whom were starring at her from behind, to ask their advice. "Do any of you see any bruises? I just wanna make sure, since you've been staring at me for a time."

"Our apologizes, miss, we can't seem to help it." The one in orange said.

"What do you mean?" Cinderella asked.

"Your're beautiful, miss," the red-head said like it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Like an angel," the brunette added. Cinderella blushed madly at this. She knew she wasn't bad-looking, but she certainly didn't think of herself that highly. Years of swimming in ash by a fireplace and being ridiculed had done a number on her self-esteem.

"Excuse me, but who are you," The brunette's voice broke her out of her musings. That was a tricky one. She was sure Regina was sending out posters for her head by now, but then again, these seemed like trustworthy fellows. 

"Oh, I'm so sorry. My name is Cinderella."

"Cinderella," he echoed. "That's beautiful. By any chance would that be Princess Cinderella?"

"Of course she's a princess," The orange-clad one stepped forward and slung his arm around the brunette. "How could she be so beautiful if she weren't. Obviously. Right miss?"

Well honesty was the best policy. Cinderella was smart enough to know that if she said anything other then the truth it would come back to bite her. "Actually no, just Cinderella. I actually work..er...worked in the palace of King White."

For a second, the dwarfs, especially Merlin, had a perplexed look plastered on all of their faces. What! How was it possible that a woman THIS beautiful wasn't a princess. It just didn't make sense. 

"Well she's still the most gorgeous girl I've ever seen. Besides it just a technicality. The spell never said the girl had to be royalty. " Merlin inwardly explained. To be fair, he really just asked out of the fact that if she was, it would be a bonus. Although this tidbit did make her quite the anomaly.

"Ah, I'm sorry but who are you all?"

This broke their prolonged staring as Merlin once again spoke for the group, while taking the time to toot his own horn. "Um, I'm Merlin. Part time hero, full time romantic. And this is Jack, Hans, Arthur, Pino, Noki, and Kio."

Once he was finished going down the line, Cinderella let out a stifled chuckle. "What a coincidence. Your names are the same as the Fearless Seven! I actually looking for them myself." 

Unknown to Cinderella at the time she was in the presence of the heroes she was searching for, but this also opened the floodgates for the dwarfs.

"Let me guess, Merlin's your favorite."

"Actually not really," She shot Merlin's hope down, causing Arthur to step forward. "Na, that Merlin's not your type. You seem more like a Prince Arthur fan to me!"

"Honestly, none of them are really my type."

With this confession, Cinderella scrambled their brains for the third time that day. Fortunately, Merlin 'covered' their tracks with a 'totally believable' excuse.

"Uh...well that's fine because we're not them. We're actually completely different people in no way the same guys transformed by a curse to look like this but only when someone looks at us. At all."

Rolling his eyes and having enough of this painful display, Arthur pushed passed Merlin to stand in front of Cinderella. "Glad were all clear. Now how can I...we assist you my lady?"

At this, the girl in question adopted a sad look of desperation on her face. "I need to find King White. Before he went missing he left clues to me and requested that I find the F7 to help. I can't tell you much but the fate of the kingdom hangs in the balance."

Seizing this chance, the groups wizard showcased his 'act first, think later' attitude. "We know the F7, and their schedule is fully booked. Leave it to me! I find the king within the month."

"I can do it in one week," Hans interuppted.

"Four days," declared Arthur.

"Three! Two! One!," The triplets went down the line.

"I already found him like two weeks ago," Jack pushed them all apart and yelled at Cinderella, to which she responded with a sarcastic, "Really?"

"I just need a few days to get him across state lines."

This clearly wasn't working. Cinderella could see this was turning into a masculinity contest, and she needed to reign them in. Fast! "I seriously need to find him. Did you forget the whole 'kingdom hangs in the balance' thing?"

"Well hold on," Merlin piped in. "No one has seen the F7 for over a year, and your not gonna find them now. We're your best bet."

"What! Their serious offering their services. Maybe their not so self-involved after all. Their actually kind of charming."

"Wow, no one's really ever offered to help me like this in my life. Stuff like this is rare. You guys are amazing." Cinderella said with sincerity.

They all seemed genuinely surprised by the compliment, with the resident magic user once again speaking for the pack. "Really? You think we're amazing?"

"Well yes, of course! From what I've seen your all caring, selfless and..."

"And not completely hideous to look at!" Merlin seemed genuinely shocked, and this statement left the servant girl feeling sympathy for them. Was that really how they viewed themselves? She certainly didn't think so.

While others may have found them not pleasant to look at, Cinderella from a young age had shown a love of all living things despite exterior looks. Heck, when she had learned the story of The Frog Prince, she had chased down a toad and kissed it full on the lips thinking it would turn into a handsome prince. So in essence, these guys were pretty cute by comparison.

"What, of course not! Your all rather cute, actually."

"I think I hit her too hard," Hans whispered to Merlin who added,"But she is beautiful." He then trotted over to her and grabbed her hand. "Well if your going to be receiving our assistance, you'll need to stay here with us. I'll show you to the guest room."

They then all lead her to an incredibly cozy looking room. While to others it might not have been much, It was like a king's chambers for Cinderella. The last time she had quarters like this were from before her step-mother. "It's beautiful! Thank you,"

"Of course," they all chimed in and with some final words they left Cinderella to her devices.


	4. rabid bunny attack

Later on in the night, Cinderella had holed herself up in her given room drawing her own wanted poster for the king. While she was no Picasso, her art skills were actually not half bad. Besides if Regina wanted to play the hunting game, she could to.

Finishing the piece, she made sure to include her location of Risky Rock before holding up up for inspection. "Not bad, if I do say so myself." With that done, she was now free to address the elephant in the room. Peeling of the glass slippers, they shimmered in the light. 

Although the physical differences between their new and previous form were what most would notice, Cinderella instead 'felt' what had to be the single biggest difference. And that was the shoes now lack of that pervasive, icky feeling she felt back in the castle chambers.

In that moment, it felt like the shoes were trying to read her for the purpose of exploitation, but now they felt almost pure. Like the blood red of the apple version had been diluted to reveal a more clean entity, one that lacked any malicious spirit. Plus, it was a bonus as she had never been to fond of red. Cinderella actually preferred the more simple crystalline look.

Placing them back on her feet, she sat on the edge of the bed before completely flopping down, letting the cushion-like feeling sink in. God, it really had been a long time since she had a proper, quality bed. Not that the castle didn't give her good accommodations, but due to class restrictions she was expected to sleep in a basic servants quarters. But none the less, she never complained. It was better then her situation with her step-family and with 3 meals and day and fair-treatment, she was satisfied.

A knock then sounded at the door, Cinderella standing to open it while reminding herself to look down first as to not cause offense. Waiting outside in the hall was Jack, applying a face mask to his green complexion. "Would you like to join me in a moisturizing mask?"

Ordinarily, the blonde would have gladly accompanied him, but at the moment her plan for finding the king was the only thing occupying her mind. After all, time was of the essence.

"Ah, thanks, but I'm actually planning on doing a little more detective work before settling in for the night. Maybe tomorrow night. But thank you for the offer," She said quickly as to purposely not give him time to respond. "Are you cure," he asked again. "It's very important to take care of your skin."

Before he could do any more to possibly guilt-trip her into going along with it, Cinderella gently shut the door. "But it is the finest French recipe meant to hydrate skin!" He pleaded. "It is made from French poop!"

Sighing in relief, the servant girl came back to the desk to clutch the wanted poster before movement outside her window grasped her attention. The shape and form of the figure almost looked-like...

"Your majesty?" And with that, she set off into the night.

*******

Elsewhere in the house, Merlin stood in his human form, (courtesy of being alone) going through the contents of a bookshelf in his workshop in search of an item in particular.

He would usually never resort to drastic measures like this, but he had been stuck under this curse for far to long now and he wanted out. Cinderella was like the god-send they had all been waiting for. A beautiful girl, who from what he had seen, was a genuinely good person. Just his type, although her beauty rivaled all those who came before her. While he did feel bad about what he was thinking to do, he reminded himself he was simply giving her a push in the right direction.

I mean under normal circumstances, she would fall in love with him just the same. Right?

"Hm, a spell that makes you fall in love," his eyes combed up the book before locating a red bound book at the top with a heart on the spine. "Ah, here we go," he reached up before he was disturbed by Hans coming in the door, causing the handsome wizard to revert to his dwarf from, the book now out of reach.

"Merlin, have you seen my cookbook?"

Honestly, was he the only person with working brain cells around here? "Have you checked the kitchen?"

"Oh, of course the kitchen." And with that Hans made his exit, Merlin turning human and letting out a sigh of annoyance before reaching up for the book. "Now where was I?"

However fate slapped him in the face yet again when Jack came in the door asking for his moisturizer of all things. Before he could snap, the love spell tome fell on Merlin's head, making him completely loose it. "No," he marched up to his teammate. "whatever it is I haven't seen it. Now please go away!" 

"Someone's got anger management issues."

Hopefully with the disturbances over with, he could get on with it. Unless...was this a sign telling him it was a bad idea? Oh, what to do. He then noticed his reflection in the mirror and gave his best suave smile at it. "Getting a kiss was never a problem with this face."

Then out of the corner of his eye he saw the light of a lantern moving towards the forest. Upon further inspection, familiar blonde locks could be seen indicating who it was.

"Cinderella?" What was she doing wandering into the forest alone at night. That was certain death. Well he wanted a moment alone with her, and now he could have that and a hero moment. After making sure his satchel was stocked with spell cards, he gave chase.

*******

"Your majesty! Your majesty?" Cinderella yelled into the black expanse. Now she was starting to regret this decision. Damn her impulse. What were the chances that it was the king and not some bear?

Then out of no where a stream of bats came flying in her direction and to large, beady yellow eyes came into her vision as a black mass stood towering over her. It looked to be a wood-carved, sentient bunny, and out of sheer fright, the lantern was dropped, the flame going out.

It slowly started to inch towards her, leaving her pinned against a tree. "Hey there, big guy. I'm sure you aren't a scary as you look. I bet you're just looking for a friend. Right?" Cinderella tried to small talk it, hoping it would deescalate the situation. 

All of a sudden like a beacon of light, blue volts of electricity attacked the bunny, and a familiar green hand grabbed her's and dragged her away. "Merlin!" She cried in relief as they ran, a difficult task thanks to height difference. "Wait, was that lighting?" She yelled.

"Actually," he smugly responded. "It's called magic. I do it." 

"Thank god! We're saved!" Cinderella thought before giving a suggestion. "Really? Then maybe hit him again!"

As she turned her head forward, Merlin turned into a human within her grasp. For a few essential moments, he simply stared in awe at being able to truly hold her hand. To be with her as his true self even if she didn't know it. He then lovingly gazed at the angel before him, when all of a sudden she looked, and he went hurdling into a tree at the sudden transformation.

Once again, she was doing the heavy lifting, practically dragging him as the bunny followed. Merlin then released her hand and pushed her forward. "Keep running and don't look back!"

"What!" She yelled in response. This was serious deja vu as she had done the same thing for her best friend less then 10 hours ago. "No way. I'm not going without you. Now's not the time to be heroic!"

"It's always a good time for heroics!" He countered. "And your're looking back! Don't do that!" 

Finally accepting she couldn't win this one, Cinderella ran off leaving Merlin free to go all out in his human form. "Hate to zap you long ears, but I need to impress a beautiful woman!"

However the bunny seemed to virtually ignore him in favor of stomping on him, and chasing after Cinderella. It didn't take long for her to notice, and of course as chase sequence logic would dictate, she found herself in a dead end.

Just as the bunny came to tackle her, a battle cry let out above her. She turned to see Arthur leaping at the beast with his sword, but unknown to her, she just cost him a size advantage as her second rescuer face planted on the wooden creature.

By some miracle of physics this set off a chain reaction which ended with the bunny crashing into some rocks and falling forward, Arthur trapped under it's paw.

"Arthur!," She instantly ran over to her friend and began trying to lift up the bunny's arm. "Hold on. I've got you." 

"It's no use, Cinderella," he wailed as she continued to struggle. "I'm slipping away! I don't have much time."

"Just need to put my back into it," she grunted, as the adrenaline of the situation made her blind to his obvious melodrama. "I see that light at the end of the funnel, time for me to kick but in heaven. I had a good one, lived it well." 

"If Snow were here, this would be a breeze." Cinderella ignored him. Seriously, she got that he was in pain but he sounded like he was writing is 'Farewell cruel world'. "Before I go, could I request a fair well kiss?"

This request illuminated a light bulb in the blonde's head. Wait was he....playing the sympathy card? Before that thought could develop any further, Jack and Hans came running up.

"Cinderella," the red-head said, relieved. "Thank goodness your safe."

"Do you need CPR? I'm basically and expert, and don't worry I brushed my teeth." Jack offered. Oh gosh, now him? Well at least he wasn't duping her like a certain dwarf.

"No I'm fine, but Arthur's kind of in a situation," she gestured to said dwarf. Just to be safe, she made sure not to jump to conclusions. 

"Uh," Hans groaned. "Would you get up!"

"So then I guess as was right. You're not hurt," Cinderella crossed her arms and gave him a disapproving look. She wasn't blind to the way the other dwarfs hit on her, their earlier comments on what they thought of her appearance made that clear to her, but for him to manipulate her sympathy was just underhanded.

"Only his pride," Hans explained before Jack added insult to injury. "You really need to find a better way to hit on girls."

Arthur then groaned as he sat up, and flashed Cinderella a smirk only for her to glare disapprovingly. The situation was soon disregarded however as three yellow lights could be seen in front of them and the ground started to tremor. The three dwarfs got in front of the girl and brandished their weapons. "Stand back," Arthur commanded, but in Cinderella's opinion it sounded a lot less genuine then when Merlin had said the same thing earlier. Wait, Merlin. She left him shooting sparks on the forest floor!

"I may have to risk my life again," she heard Arthur add, to which she heavily rolled her eyes. The four began to back up as the wooden contraption camp up on them, only for a hatch to suddenly pop open and Pino, Noki, and Kio to come out. 

"Someone call for three inventors?"

"Three geniuses?"

"Oh, that sounds like us!"

"Everyone came running to help. Great, just great." Arthur mumbled as he crossed his arms. "Everyone except Merlin that is.."Jack started before Hans cut him off. "Ah, there he is," and true to word the very dwarf Cinderella was most concerned about came running out of the forest.

"Where have you been? Something awful could have happened to Cinderella if I hadn't" Arthur began to chastise him before he and the the rest of the team froze at what happened next. Namely Cinderella ran past them all to go to Merlin, got on her knees and enveloped him in a hug. "Oh god, you're okay." She ended the embrace while balancing back on her heels and staring him in the eyes. "Don't scare me like that again!"

Merlin could only dumbly nod, and she stood up and placed a hand over her heart in relief that the ordeal was over. Arthur and the rest had jealously bubbling up in them at her actions, the former wielder of Excalibur more then any other however. Wanting to put an end to the sight, he strode over to her. "Shouldn't we get going?"

With a nod, they set out back towards the cottage, Cinderella at the front with Merlin. "You shouldn't have gone in the forest this late a night. Something could have happened." he told her with genuine concern. That hug earlier had made her seem more real to him, and less like an object. He could see the goodness of her heart and knew that if he wanted her to break his curse, he would have to romance her the old-fashioned way.

"I should've known better," she looked downwards. "I thought I saw the king and had to see for myself. Forgive me, your the one who put themselves in needles danger." 

Seeing her self-blame, Merlin did what he knew would be most effective. He simply clutched her hand and consoled her. "Don't worry about it. I've had worse. And if the need comes up, call and I'll do it again."

This got a chuckle out of Cinderella and the wizard swore he had never heard such a beautiful sound. It was ruined however when Prince "I'm buff", came up to her. "Oh Cinderella, if I remember correctly I never got my thanks from earlier," he tapped his lips.

"Oh my god! This again!" She thought and did the only thing she knew would send a clear message. She slapped him across the face. "Oh dear, thank you!" she said over-dramatically, the other six audibly laughing. 

Arthur seemed to realize what he had done and tried to play it off. "Ah, It was no problem at all my lady." With a satisfied nod from Cinderella, they continued on, the others laughing at his failed attempt. "Nice try," Merlin snickered.

Once they returned to the house, Cinderella bid goodnight to them and went into a peaceful sleep, while unknown to her, her hosts held a midnight meeting. "Alright gentlemen," Arthur said with a pointer in hand while standing at a map. "To break this curse we're gonna have to work as a cohesive unit. Which means...you do everything I say."

"Excuse'" Hans said as all their heads snapped up to the orange-clad one in disbelief, as several other statements of disapproval chorused around the living room. To clarify, Arthur started pointing to several locations. "Jack and Hans will search around the Dismal Lake, Triplets, you search the Cave of Despair, Cinderella and I will go to Golden Goose Avenue."

"Golden Goose Avenue," Merlin repeated. "Which happens to be your go-to spot for dates."

"We are going to focus on the mission! And then see where the evening takes us." Arthur corrected.

Merlin lounged back in his chair at that. "The only thing you'll be shopping for is rejection. You can't even afford that!"

"I like my odds! You saw what she did," he gestured to the now red hand print on his face. "An expression of affection. Every woman shows it differently." 

"You took your shot, you got slapped," Jack blatantly told him.

"And I remind you that this is the closest thing anyone's had to a kiss since the curse."

At that Merlin smugly laughed. "Pretty sure a hug counts as more a an 'Expression of Affection'." To which the others reluctantly nodded. Arthur simply ignored him however and continued on his rant. "Let's work together to guide Cinderella's feelings towards me so we can break the curse."

"What about the rest of us?" the wizard stated the obvious.

"After I resume my princely form," Arthur schemed, "The word about F7 will be out and ladies will be begging to kiss your green mugs!"

"Really?" Pino asked. "Sounds reasonable," said Kio. "I'll bring the gelato," added Noki.

"Getting one kiss sure is easier then getting seven," Jack mused. At that point Merlin and fed up. "This is NOT a plan. He's just out for himself."

"A half-baked plan is better then none," Hans told him.

"Don't worry Merlin. I have a big assignment for you." Arthur smirked. "Big assignment?" asked the wizard in question. What had they gotten themselves into?


	5. on the hunt

Cinderella awoke to an almost ideal morning. She was in a comfy bed, the sun was shining through the window, and the birds were singing. After all the excitement last night, a good nights sleep was what she needed to feel ready to commence searching for King White!

Speaking of last night, she started to wonder what the dwarfs were playing at. She knew enough to know it wasn't anything bad, but they almost seemed too willing and able. Oh well, she had more important things to worry about.

For one, she remembers the main sitting area of their house being a complete wreck. While she didn't want to intrude, years of cleaning for a living got to her and she felt compelled to at least sweep the floor. With that she located the nearest broom after cleaning herself up for the day, and set about her tasks.

With a little musical accompaniment that is.

A dream is a wish your heart makes...

At the other end of the hall, the F7 awoke to an angelic sound that was recognizable as singing. "What's going on out there?" Merlin questioned before they all hopped out of bed and went to investigate. What they found was something out of a fairy tale. 

Cinderella stood in the middle of the room, broom in hand, twirling around as she swept. The cherry on top was that she was singing in the most heavenly voice known to man. Coupled with the sun lighting her hair, she was a vision of loveliness.

No matter how your heart is grieving

If you keep on believing

The dream that you wish

Will come true

When she finished and place the broom down to admire the now spotless, she almost jump a mile high when applause sounded from behind her. Cinderella turned to find the seven dwarfs with wide smiles and clapping tiny hands. "I'm sorry for waking you," she smiled sheepishly. "But after all you've done for me sweeping your floor seemed like the least I could do."

"Don't worry about it," Merlin assured her, causing her to smile at him before Jack added something. "Besides, you know what they say. The early bird gets the worm."

"I hope that's the case," she chuckled before a ding went off in the kitchens. "Oh, I also made you some muffins and scones."

"YOU BAKE!" They all cried in amazement. Beautiful, kind, prudent, and she could cook. She was to good to be true. With this in mind, true mental warfare broke out among the princes as to who could be the one to win her heart. And they knew the fastest way to do it was save the king.

They all sat down for a hearty breakfast, and while her skills didn't approach Hans's, she was still an excellent patissere. After washing all the plates, they went outside to take stalk, discuss their plan for the day, and test the triplets new invention from the night before, the printer.

"Here you go. I drew these up last night." Cinderella said as she past out her home drawn wanted poster. "I must say you have quite and artistic eye," Hans complimented her as he inspected it.

"Oh that's nothing," she snorted as she passed one down to Merlin. "Princess Snow's art teacher, Pablo Picasoger, is out of this world." 

"Is it safe to assume the princess takes after her father," Merlin asked her. "Actually she takes after both of her parents pretty down the middle." She responded and was met with a nod from the wizard before Arthur came up and clapped him on the shoulder. 

While Cinderella still felt rather salty with him after last night, for the sake of the king she was willing to cooperate and be civil with him as long as the muscle-head returned the favor. Although it did seem almost TOO convenient that she would be in a primary shopping district alone with him for the day. "Alright, you know the plan. Let's move. Deploy," He then ran in front of the group and stuck a pose. "Thunder Dwarfs are go!"

The blonde girl let out a chuckle at the reference as they all walked ahead. Except for Merlin. "And where do you think you're going?" Arthur stopped him and gestured to the captured bunny from the previous night. "Your post is right there."

"You watch the savage monster," taunted Pino as Noki growled and bantered with Kio. "I call him vicious!" "I call him wood-bottom." Last to leave was Jack who offered some 'uplifting' words. "Don't worry Merlin, we'll make sure you get kissed to. Eventually." This left the now human Merlin to himself while off in the forest the group split up.

"We'll split up here," Arthur directed as he and Cinderella made the turn to head to Golden Goose Avenue, her waving bye to the others. "I know where we could start looking," he informed her. "Really. I hope you're right," she responded with hope. He lead her along a stone path to a pavileon where a sword stood, stuck in a stone.

"Wow," she gasped as she approached the weapon. "Is this what I think it is?" She turned to the dwarf beside her.

"I present Excalibur! A legendary sword trapped in this rock for centuries. Waiting for a man of great strength to release it."

"But doesn't this sign say , 'do not attempt to remove by force'", she gestured to a sign that said just that. "Aw, dang" the prince muttered to himself. He should have removed it last night. He then tried to cover his tracks. "The truth is I realized you were the woman of my destiny the moment I saw ya. I thought if i could show you my strength, I would be worthy of your affections."

He turned to Cinderella, expecting to see her swooning at his words, but instead he saw her standing on the stone, Excalibur aloft in her hand, and a surprised look on her face. "Oh, sorry. I'll put it back," the blonde said as she placed the blade back in it's slot. 

"No,no!" He shouted as she returned 'his' weapon of great power to it's confines. "Can I hold it?" He then proceeded to pounce on the stone and tried to budge it out with force. "Sorry Arthur, It was probably beginner's luck. I could pull it out again if you want," she tried to console him as they walked away, the prince having just given up. "No," he responded. "I'm not humiliated at all."

However both left the site, failing to take note of the plaque on the stone's front which read;

Unselfish, gracious, and truthful must yea be

To set the sword Excalibur free

*******

Back at the cottage, human Merlin sat by the confined bunny on a barrel, angrily munching on a carrot. He was stopped by the utter look of disappointment on the creatures face.

"Don't look at me like that. I'm the real prisoner here!"

He then noticed it perk up at the sight of the food. "What? Your hungry?" He then pretended to toss a carrot away to mess with it yelling, "Fetch!" Then an idea clicked. Next thing he knew he was riding on the bunny's back through the forest, tossing the veggie in front of it.

"Hop along big guy! There's no way Arthur's breaking this curse alone. And i'm certainly not going to leave Cinderella with him." 

*******

Back with Cinderella and Merlin, the two had just reached the gates to enter Golden Goose Avenue. The gate itself was a pristine set up, with a large golden egg standing above and arch. As they walked in however, Cinderella could feel the eyes of several people on her back, but for now she ignored them as she gazed at the hustle and bustle of the street.

It had been years since she'd had a day about the town and although locating the king was top priority, she would do her best to gather some enjoyment while working.

As she stood admiring the town, Arthur walked past her and when she went to follow, a man with a barrel perched on his shoulder came walking past. "Excuse me," he said, obviously trying to sound more masculine. 

"Arthur, where are you going?" She asked one she caught up to the crestfallen dwarf. He simply held up the wanted poster, and Cinderella got the message as he walked off. "Ah, okay. I'll see you later."

With that she commenced her search, starting with the mason currently working on a stone goose in front of her. "Um, excuse me," she called out to him, his hand slipping and scraping the carvings neck when she surprised him "Look at what you made me do, you," he turned to yell at her but stopped in his tracks once he saw her face.

"You made me make it perfect," his tune rapidly changed to sound suave as he leaned on the stone, only for it's head to slide clean off. 

"I am so sorry," Cinderella told him with remorse in her eyes before the mason cut her off. "Don't be. Are you alright? And don't worry about this," he tapped the now decapitated goose before setting to work on it at a rapid pace. In a matter of moments, he revealed a waist-up bust of Cinderella with the bottom half still-being the goose.

"Gosh, him too! Did the shoes do something to me," She wondered to herself, not stopping to consider the possibility that she was in fact that beautiful. Simply chuckling and waving bye, Cinderella wrote the encounter off and began asking around the town, getting normal responses from women while men seemed to put on a facade to impress her.

God, it confused her to no end.

Eventually she gave up on passerby's and moved on to the cart owners. She came across a man selling stuffed bunny's, and even when he responded no to having seen the king, he offered her a bunny which Cinderella politely turned down.

Next as she went up to the balloon-seller, she noticed a little girl's balloon flying away from her. The blonde retrieved it,and handed it back to the girl before going towards the seller, who released his entire bundle into the stratosphere when he caught a look of her. She continued like this for an hour before she turned a corner, munching on an apple she had been offered and taken out of hunger. 

What she found was Arthur sulking, faced pressed up against the window of a toy store where a little girl stood taunting him by pulling the toy sword out of it stone. This would do her no good. He needed to snap out of it. "Arthur, I was thinking," she told him. "what if I just went back and pulled Excalibur for you? Our secret."

At this she instantly saw the dwarfs face light up as he turned to her. "Really? We have a secret now," he gestured between the two of them. "Yep," she nodded and the two fist-bumped to seal the deal. "I like a girl who can keep things classified! Let's find your King, Cinderella."

This put a faint smile on Cinderella's face. Maybe he wasn't so bad. Personally muscle-heads weren't her type, but she could still see him becoming a good friend. Even though she had never been out with a guy, or spent much time thinking on the matter, some sleep over chat's with Snow left her knowing that she was attracted to a more intellectual man.

As the pair marched forward, a poster caught the blonde's eyes and made her stop in her tracks. There was a wanted poster with her face plastered on it. Looks like Regina had begun her search, and would no doubt be out her her head. Cinderella took the poster and rolled it up in her hands, but when she turned to find Arthur, she instead saw 2 big guards down the street asking around...for her!

They took notice of her, and Cinderella didn't hesitate to take off running, the guards pursuing her. Soon after, they crashed into an apple cart, giving Cinderella a chance to duck into an alleyway. She soon realized her error however as she hit a dead end.

Thinking fast she shimmied her way behind a standing mirror that was leaning against a stairwell, thankful for her slim physique. No sooner then she hid, the two guards came stomping down the alleyway. "She not here," once said. "Let's go, she must've taken the other turn." 

Once they left, Cinderella waited a few moments to be safe and stepped out from behind the mirror, dusting herself off to go find Arthur.

*******

Speaking of Arthur, he was currently less then a block away form the girl location and calling out her name in hope that she would show up. 

"Where's Cinderella," A familiar voice suddenly asked from behind him. "That's what I'd like to know," he responded before realizing his mistake. 

"Wait a minute," the ex-wielder of Excalibur questioned as he strode over to Merlin who was leaning up against the giant bunny. "Who said you could leave your post?"

"I'm just walking the bunny," the wizard quipped, smugly. Arthur simply pushed his shoulder and walked right past him, continuing to yell, "Cinderella!"

In annoyance, Merlin gave the bunny another carrot as two armed guards came up to him. "Hey, have you seen this girl?" they asked him and gave him a flyer which to his confusion, had the face of the very girl he was looking for plastered on it. 

*******

Just as Cinderella was exiting the alley way, 4 guards stepped in her path. "Well look what we found men, this pretty little bounty we've been looking for all day," he said in a patronizing voice.

"I can see why the boss want's ya," another said. "Your a real beauty. Shame your a filthy servant."

"Uh, I'm really not in the mood," Cinderella groaned. Over the years she had become disensitized to insults and they simply left her annoyed.

"But your shoes, now those are interesting. Hand 'em over." Another said, ignoring her warning. However, the might as well have dug his own grave as this command sparked an idea in Cinderella's head. Playing as innocent as she could, doe eyes and quivering lip included, she began slipping off her shoes. 

"Please don't hurt me," she whimpered, and noticed the men dropping their guards. She took her chance to pounce, unaware of the short, green, and brunette dwarf that had just come looking for her witnessing the whole scene. He was positively seething with how they had talked to Cinderella, and was ready to strike them down when...

"Here!" Cinderella yelled as she quickly retracted her hands, dropping her shoes on the ground, brought her fist's together, and slammed them down on the first man's head, knocking him. The other three however, raised their lances at her, pushing her back at blade-point. Merlin saw his chance to strike, and lit them up sky high.

As soon as they dropped to the ground he saw the surprised look on Cinderella's face. He picked up her slippers and strode over to her. "Since I couldn't save you last night, though this might make up for it. Here are your shoes. " 

Cinderella however was just staring at him in awe. Had he just come all the way from the cottage and saved her. "If he hadn't been here I might have..." 

Overcome with emotions, she dropped to her eyes and embraced him like she did last night. "Thank you," she gave him her brightest smile as she stood up and placed her shoes on her feet. "It was," he cleared his throat. "It was no problem as all. I'm just glad your okay."

The moment ended as soon as they heard Arthur still calling out her name outside the alley. They both chuckled as Merlin made a ladies first gesture, the two of them making their way back to the orange-clad dwarf. However their troubles weren't over yet. As soon as they stepped out of the alleyway, and Arthur caught sight of her, he called out, "Cinderella," alerting the two previous guards to her presence.

"Stop!" They yelled as they chased her. Merlin, thinking fast rode on his new trusty bunny up to Cinderella and hoisted her up onto it. "Hold on," he told her as they hopped out of Golden Goose Avenue.

However, unknown to the servant girl, she had dropped her home made flyer for the guards to find. "Got'cha now," they cackled.

*******

After booking it through the forest non-stop, Merlin and Cinderella decided they had gone far enough and dismounted the bunny in a clearing set across from a beautiful flower field, the creature practically collapsing.

"Now we now how fast a bunny can hop in a pinch," Merlin commented to her, earning a chuckle from the blonde as she turned to him. "Thank you, again for all your help."

"It was my pleasure, m'lady," he put his hands up modestly. "But I also did it for us. By the way, uh, what is this," he pulled out her wanted poster. 

"Well, cat's out of the bag. I just hope he doesn't think I'm mental." Cinderella twiddled with her thumbs. She would have to tell him about her shoes. "I know it sounds crazy but it's my slippers. Their magical."

"I know their fabulous," he responded, admiring the footwear. "But why are they after you."

"No," she said exasperated. "My shoes are actually made of magic." Before she could say any more, Arthur caught up with them, waving the poster. "Cinderella! Are you a criminal?"

"What," She asked shocked. "No, of course not. I promise." She assured him, and he let out a sigh of relief. "I knew a girl this pretty couldn't possibly be a criminal!"

"Here we go again," She thought. "Look,we should probably head back before it get's dark." After some more flexing from Arthur she started to walk off. This would make it so much harder to find the King. And what about Snow. Was she safe?

She turned around when she heard Merlin's voice however. "I have an idea," he told them before jumping into the flower field, walking around and kicking up petals, drawing out the likeness of Cinderella's poster. 

The servant girl stood in awe at the petals falling around her, letting them fall into her hand before she refocused on Merlin. He really was a good guy, and honestly he was the person she had become closest to in the last 24 hours. Sure they hadn't talked much, but she could easily tell he had a good heart, intentions, and mind. Not to mention he was rather sweet and cute and...

Oh crud, did she like him?

No sooner then she had begun her musings, she was brought out of it by a "Ta da!" and Merlin looking proudly at his work. Cinderella felt her heart flutter just a tad. He had done this...for her!

"What do you think," he asked as he climbed up to her, brushing stray petals off his person. "That is absolutely amazing. I don't know what to say." She crouched to his level, before deciding to test her theory. His reaction would tell her if he genuinely liked her.

Slowly she leaned in, her mouth coming dangerously towards his face. Merlin stood in utter shock. Was this it! Had he done it? In the background the bunny and Arthur were gawking at the sight. Was Cinderella seriously about to kiss Merlin.

However just as it looked like she was about to plant her lips on his, and free him from the curse, she diverted her path and simply blew some petals off her face. She got hr information and he came back positive for feelings.

"You had some on your face," she shyly wrote it off as she stood. "Alright let's go." Arthur sighed in relief as he followed her, giving Merlin the 'I'm watching you' signal before turning. This left human Merlin standing in awe at Cinderella's retreating form. Sure he might have just been sucking up to her for his own gain at the start, but now he held genuine feelings for the blonde. It might have been to early to say, but he genuinely, romantically liked her.


	6. a-vu-rauge

It was the morning of the next day. After regrouping with the rest of the team yesterday, the eight had a rather normal evening. Currently, Merlin was in the downhill garden of the house, picking and placing carrots in a bucket. As he stood up after grabbing what he needed, he inhaled deeply and a peaceful smile came over his face as he reminisced about the almost-kiss he and Cinderella shared yesterday.

He could see a vision of her descending from the clouds and as he puckered his lips to kiss her, he was hit on the head by a carrot, courtesy of his current number one rival for the blonde's affections, Arthur.

"What was that for?"

"You sir, are sabotaging my relationship with Cinderella," Arthur responded with one hundred percent seriousness. "What relationship are you talking about?" 

Excalibur's ex-wielder then looked skyward proudly. "Cinderella and I share a secret. I won't tell you what it is but...it's a secret!"

"Well while your keeping secrets, I'm going to break my curse." Retorted the wizard.

"Your nothing without your spells, magic boy."

"And your nothing without Excalibur!" Merlin then gasped, realizing what this 'secret' might be. "Your not waiting for someone to pull it out for you. Are you?"

"How did you know?" Arthur cried as he grabbed his comrade by his collar. "Well is it true?" But before Arthur could respond, a net was thrown over them, no one in sight to save the pair.

*******

Meanwhile back at the house, Hans was hard at work in the kitchen, baking a sheet of doughnuts for Cinderella. After all, the way to a woman's heart was through her stomach.

Once he was finished, he brought the plate out to the girl of the hour, who was sitting on the sofa. "Ah, Hans! You shouldn't have!" She looked at the confections, her moth practically watering. She couldn't remember the last time she had eaten a sweet.

"Something sweet for someone sweeter," the red-head replied as Cinderella took a bite out a blue-glazed doughnut, moaning at the taste as she chewed. "This is amazing!"

"Oh, it's nothing," he waved his hand at her. "Just let me know what you want. Anytime for the rest of your life. Do you like fondue?"

"Behold," the french accent of Jack cried as he came down the stairs into the living room. "Carved by the finest jewelers out of all the jewelers I know. Which is a lot." He then stopped in front of Cinderella and presented to her the single biggest diamond ring she had ever seen in her life. 

"Well this is another level of extreme," She inwardly snickered as Jack continued. "And it's yours, for absolutely nothing. Except maybe a kiss." At this attempt to charm her, the servant girl rolled her eyes playfully. "That's very sweet and flattering Jack, but I can't accept it. I don't want any objects, just good intentions. Plus it would make me feel like I was scamming you."

However this statement seemed to go over his head. 'My intentions are more then good, they are surperb."

There conversation was cut short when they heard a nasally voice speaking over what sounded like a megaphone. "Testing, testing. 1,2. Testing, testing.. No don't push that you dolt." The person said. 

The three currently gathered int he living room looked around in confusion before looking out the window. Their stood a slimy looking prince on his horse, surrounded by a whole royal guard, and worst of all, Merlin and Arthur tied up at the front. "Attention, you hideous dwarfs!" The prince called, only to pull the mike away and ask himself, "Is is dwarfs with an 'f' or with a 'v'? I wanna use whatever's more offensive."

"Ah, it's that loser, Prince Average," Jack explained from within the house. "You know him?" Cinderella questioned.

"Heard that," Average piped in. "It's pronounced Avu-rauge!"

"Ah, please," Hans groaned, before weasel-like prince continued. "Inside your amateur's attempt at a facade of a sham, of a travesty of a veneer of a castle is a gorgeous, WANTED, criminal! I hereby command that all of you exit the premises and surrender post-haste. Fair to comply, and you will never see these two again," he gestured to his two hostages.

"Your have until 3. One!" he shouted and the soldiers fanned out. "Two! I lied. Charge," he shouted, the soldiers doing just that. Inside the house, Cinderella weighed her options and decided to go with the one that would give the best outcome to her friends. With that she threw open the front door and stepped out to meet Prince Average.

As soon as the soldiers saw her however, the stumbled and fell in a heap, only for the weasel prince, to step over them, his eyes fixated on the servant girl. That crone who came to him was right about her, although the photo didn't do her justice. "Am I who you want?" she asked him to which he responded hazily," Yes. Yes you are. Though I don't know if you're a person or a vision of beauty. Some kind of angelic...thing with wings. Angelic wing thing."

Ignoring his statement, Cinderella continued on, though not before making some demands of her own. "I will come with you, but only after you release my friends."

"Do it! Do it!" Average screeched as a soldier removed the bindings on Merlin and Arthur, the two making their way back to the girls side as the prince continued to run his mouth. "Now here's the good news. It's my birthday, and you are going to be the bell of the ball!"

"While I'm humbled by the offer, really, I..." She was once again cut off by the Prince. "Oh, I wasn't offering, more like ordering. Prepare the lady's carriage," he told a nearby soldier.

"She said she doesn't want to go with you, Average," Merlin defended her.

"A-VU-RAUGE! Don't troll me troll."

"Uh, how rude," Cinderella spat as she marched toward the Prince, who apparently didn't get the memo. "I know, right. I couldn't agree more, subjects these days," however he made a grave mistake when he gripped her forearm, giving her a valid reason to finally deck Average in the face, sending him flying.

He was helped to his feet by two soldiers, as Cinderella glared at him and Merlin and Arthur laughed at his predicament. "Get her!" he growled, causing the guards to begin descending on the three who were having their own...issues.

"You hold off the guards, I'll get her out of here," Arthur told Merlin as the two played tug-o-war with Cinderella's arms. "No, I'm faster," Merlin argued. "You stay here and buy us time."

The two were snapped out the squabble as two guards sung their fists at them, sending them flying away towards the house. Just as they were about to get overwhelmed, a shield flew out in front of them, knocking the guards back. It boomeranged back to Hans, who caught it only for his weapon to pin him a wooden beam.

"Here's an idea," He hollered at the two. "Stop fighting, and fight!" The two then got their individual weapons tossed at the, Merlin's satchel, and Arthur's sword, courtesy of Jack. "What's the plan?" he asked. "Let's rescue Cinderella," Arthur replied, unsheathing his sword. 

"Like the old days guys," said Merlin as he prepared two spell cards, and Jack donned his invisibility cloak. As the soldiers charged at them, the 4/7's of the F7 leaped up in the air, Merlin being propelled by his lighting, and they each tackled a man to the ground. The battle commenced, and very quickly it turned in the dwarfs favor, they seemingly still retaining their battle skills.

"Get this over with, their just dwarfs," Average muttered in disappointment as he watched his men get decimated. Meanwhile behind him, while being held in place by two guards, Cinderella was having her own brainstorming session, finally connecting the dot's about the dwarfs true identities.

"Their fighting styles and weapons are to similar. Not to mention their clothes and names...gosh I really am dense sometimes. But now I have almost no doubt. The guys...are the Fearless Seven!" Her eyes widened at the truth, before coming to rest on Merlin. So they were under a curse, and that must be why they were coming on so strong in the flirting department. 

All of a sudden, the guard to her left lost his footing an fell, his lance appearing to fly up and knock the other out after a command of "Duck," was called out in a familiar french accent. When she was released, Jack appeared from under his cloak and signed for her to follow him.

Prince Average took note of this and promptly responded with, "Oh, hello guards. Taking a break? Well FYI, their getting away!" This sent a whole pack of men on Cinderella and Jack's tails. 

Merlin looked up from where he lay to see his friend and Cinderella running away as another guard prepared to toss a spiked-ball at them. To try and protect them, he reached for a spell, only to find his satchel empty. Rapidly thinking, he saw the bunny and an idea sparked. Merlin promptly threw a carrot at the spike-ball throwing guards head, and unknown to him, his fate was sealed at the wooden bunny tackled him.

"Yeah," he shouted in victory. "You just got Merlined!" His words instantly lost meaning however when the same guard hit the bunny at him like a baseball, sending them both through a wall into the house. 

Back with Cinderella and Jack, the two were running through a system of support beam for the houses front, the guards eventually getting stuck.Jack turned to laugh, but the girl grabbed his hand to continue running. With her height, they were able to jump over a sizeable gap onto another piece of rising land, until they were cornered on both ends by guards. Putting her brain to work, Cinderella snatched Jack's cloak and yelled to duck, both vanishing into thin air.

Back with Merlin, just as he was pulling himself out of the rubble, and invisible force flew on top of him, the removal of the cloak letting him see it was Cinderella and Jack. "I'm sorry, are you okay," the girl winced while still sitting on him, to which the wizard replied no.

Arthur and Hans rejoined the group then, the two blondes hopping of Merlin so he could stand as the lances closed in on them. "Um, gentlemen," Jack said while pushing Arthur forward. "he surrenders." However just when things looked most hopeless, Pino, Noki, and Kio busted through a wall in their robot to save them. Before long, the robot had decimated the guards and finished it's display by sticking a super-hero landing, complete with an explosion off to the side.

The celebrated to soon, as of all things, Average wheeled forward a FREAKING canon. "You've got to be kidding," Jack groaned as the prince continued to run his mouth. "Finally, the big guns. Thank you! FIRE!"

With two successive strikes, the robot was on the ground and Cinderella rushed to get them out, not realizing where she was standing. "Fire," Average commanded again, however this time it was on course to blow Cinderella's head off but just in the nick of time, Merlin pushed her out of the way as the two tumbled back, him landing on her side and the canon ball lodging itself in a support beam.

Realizing where he was, Merlin instantly jumped off of the girl, a blush blooming on both their faces. "Whoa, close. Uh, the canon ball, not you." However this excuse made Merlin take note of the ball's position and the waning stability of the front frame of the house as Average continued to rant.

"Time out! You almost blew her up, and she can't go to my party if you blow her up! Okay. Are we good? Good. Time back in." He then strode up to the group and yelled, "Surrender monsters!"

"Wait," Cinderella called, ready to surrender herself for the sake of her new friends. Just as she started to walk forward, she was held in place, and looking back she saw Merlin grasping her hand, shaking his head 'no'. He then walked in front of her, the other six following suit. They were...protecting her.

Merlin then, to everyone confusion, stepped backwards and two the side revealing the canon ball. Without warning he picked it up and hurled it at Average, getting a scream from the prince only the ball barely went three feet. But the damage was done.

The castle front of the home started to fall forward from it's plot much to the horror of everyone present. The wizard then kicked the front door open and yelled, "Everyone inside," as all eight of them dove through the door, leaving the frame to crash down.

By some miracle however, Average was left standing and unscathed as he glared at them all. "You messed with the wrong prince. There is nothing average about A-vu-rauge. I shall return! On Tuesday...no wait, let me check my calender...Thursday. I shall return Thursday," and with that he ran of leaving the gang of eight cheering. 

"We'll be waiting," said Jack.

"And ready," added Arthur.

"Arevederci," "Ciao for now," "Bye bye," taunted the triplets.

"You just got dwarfed. I don't know, Merlined might be better," said the wizard before Cinderella swept him up into a hug which left him wide eyed. She then took note of their audience, who promptly lifted their arms asking for a hug. The blonde nervously laughed and placed Merlin back on the ground, thinking about her actions.

"Maybe I do like him."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for not writing out the full battle scene, but it made me feel overwhelmed considering everything that goes on, and the fact that the specifics have no bearing on the story. Speaking of which, I hope your enjoying it and practicing that o-so-crucial social distancing. Keep safe- Lulu


	7. one kiss away

Later that night, after the 'unfortunate' departure of Prince Average, Cinderella and Merlin were sitting together chatting, in a corner of the house while the others were stuffing their faces.

She initially pulled him aside to thank him for the numerous times he had saved her life in the past three days, but eventually it turned into them laughing, talking, sharing stories, and generally getting to know each other better. At this point they both knew they had feelings for the other, but since they didn't know it was mutual they didn't say anything.

The blonde had also figured out that her hosts truly were the Fearless Seven, but she decided to keep that information sealed for the moment for fear of seeming invasive.

"You should have seen the look on his bug ugly face when bunny came running at him," they laughed as he recounted when he sicked the wooden animal on the guard earlier. However, this brought around something Cinderella was desperate to point out to him.

"That's how you see everything, isn't it?"

"With my eyes," he responded, a confused look on his face. Cinderella shook her head and brought her knees up to her chest. "You always talk about what a person looks like."

"I do!" he sounded genuinely shocked. "I wouldn't say that. But I can't wait for you to see the real me." While he may have thought he was being figurative and cryptic, he didn't realize the blonde understood what he meant more then he thought. And she had to admit, she was curious about the human Merlin. Was a different from dwarf Merlin?

"What kind of Merlin is the real you?"

"You might not believe me, but the real me is famous, handsome, and even popular. Not short, stumpy and green. He's someone you'd be proud to be seen with and who is worthy of you."

She laughed at this, "Yeah your short, stumpy, and green, but your also a wonderful, charming person that I genuinely admire and already consider worthy." She confessed. However the sentimental comment seemed to completely escape him. "I'm not explaining it right. If you saw the real me, you'd now exactly what I mean."

Cinderella shook her head at this. Was he really this dense. "I think I can see the real you, and I like you just as you are."

Merlin had a hilarious gaping mouth and wide-eyed face, showcasing just how truly shocked he was at this statement. "Maybe I am getting somewhere with her. Does she maybe...return my feelings? No, how could she?" Instead he simply let out a dry laugh and continued trying to explain his true self to her. Even if Cinderella couldn't see him, she could still feel the presence of his old self.

"Huh, that's hilarious. Here, close your eyes and imagine the real me. I guarantee you it will be different."

Humoring him, the blonde did just that, and surprisingly to her, her brain's sensory gave her the feeling of a bigger figure next to her. "I do feel something different."

"Really!?"

"Yes, but eyes opened or closed to me your still Merlin. Now tell me, what am I to you." This was it! His response would give her all the information she would need to decipher his feelings for her.

"Your a gift," she heard him respond. "A gift that will transform me into someone amazing. Just like your amazing."

Good lord, he was charming! Cinderella felt little butterflies in her chest at his response. Any doubts about his feelings went out the window along with her's. She really was whipped for him. But then it hit her just who he was. She had gotten so used to green Merlin, she had forgotten about his other persona that was the true him.

If what she had heard was true, then the 'true' Merlin really was everything he had just described. So then, what did that make her. 

Here was good old self-doubt rearing it's ugly head. She was a scullery maid in a castle and with nothing to offer him. What if...she continued thinking as she opened her eyes to turned to him, only to be met with a set of puckered lips. Forgetting her woes, she laughed shamelessly at him, the wizard opening his eyes and averting them.

They sat in awkward silence for a moment, before he asked her a question which, if she was being honest, tugged at her heartstrings. "So, which one of your parents do you take after most?"

"Huh? What do you mean."

He blushed sheepishly at that. "Well since yesterday when I asked about Princess Snow White, I must confess I started to wonder about your parents and what they must have been like for you to have turned out like you have."

Cinderella chuckled before answering."Easily my mother. My father would always tell me how much I looked like her and how took after her in spirit. But they were both amazing. The best parents any kid could ask for."

He gave a gentle smile at that. "She sounds like a lovely women. I'd love to meet them one day if given the chance." However his smile fell when he noticed the forlorn look on the girls face. "Uh, you can't," she said somberly. "They both died when I was little."

Merlin instantly regretted bringing the subject, and placed a green hand over her tiny pale one, taking the time to notice how calloused they were. "I'm sorry. If I'd known I would have never..."

"No, don't worry about it," she cut him off, giving him a tiny smile. "If were gonna be friends you might as well here my basic life story."

"Are you sure?"

After a curt nod, she began. "Up through most of my childhood, I lived happily with my parents on their estate. Not a day went by that I didn't feel loved. Then soon after, my mother died of illness. I was seven. About 3 years later, he remarried to a women who became my step-mother, and I gained two step-sisters. They were civil at first, but that ended when my father passed in a carriage accident. From there on, my step-mother gathered up all her assets to blow on shopping, fired the staff, and made me her own personal slave."

"This went on for about 3 years. I could never go five minutes without one of them hollering my name to fix them a bath, make them food, dress them, or worse. One day while running an errand, I ran into Princess Snow White and we became fast friends, and after finding out about my situation she offered me a job as a maid in the castle. I accepted and that was the end of the nightmare. And that's it."

She had done it. Laid herself bare, well almost, she didn't mention the shoes, but that was a moot point. What would he think of her now. Would he decide he was too good for her, or that she was less? Afraid of the answer, Cinderella didn't meet his eyes. That is, until she felt a tiny hand grip her chin and turn her head, her blue eyes meeting his brown ones. 

However instead of a look of disgust on his face, she saw something else; Sympathy and genuine care. "I am so, so sorry you had to go through that." He said in one of the softest tones she had ever heard. Cinderella meanwhile felt like she might cry from the look he was giving her alone. He really was a good person. Blinking back her tears, she simply clutched his hand after she brought it down from her face and returned the smile.

"Don't be, it's not your fault. Besides, in a way I'm kind of grateful for it. If It hadn't happened I might not be who I am today, and I probably wouldn't have met you."

While he seemed to be stunned at her words at first, he eventually gave her a nod of agreement. They spent the rest of the night chatting away and laughing, not aware of what tomorrow would bring, but very aware of their growing feelings for each other.

*******

Morning had come and the team of eight were busy on their latest endeavor; raising the houses downed frame and repainting it. Earlier the triplets had set up a pulley system to put it back into place and currently Merlin was sliding down it towards Cinderella, landing on his feet in front of her.

She was standing on the frame, laughing at his flamboyant landing, and his he stood he took her hand to help her step down into the window cut out. Ever since last night the two had gotten a lot closer and were sharing more tiny acts of affection, which unbeknowst to them the others noticed and regarded with much envy. They knew he was the front runner for her kiss at this point, but what they didn't know, was that of the legitimate feelings that were present between the two.

"Don't move," he reminded her t which she responded, "I wouldn't dream of it."

"Okay!" He yelled over to the triplets who were inside of their robot. "Pino, Noki, Kio, show us what you got!"

"Okey dokey," and with that the machine's hands clutched the rope and began to pull with the help of the other six dwarfs. Merlin, Jack and Hans on one side, while Arthur on the other by himself. Cinderella laughed with delight as the frame raised around her, and she began to direct the men on their placement. "Yeah, a little to the left..little more...right there!"

Once the frame had been set firmly in place, they began the painting process with white and a shade of canary blue. While it took quite a bit of time, they satisfaction it brought them was worth it when they finished, looking on at their renovated home.

"Now that look like a real home," Cinderella commented. "Yeah, I could get used to that," said Merlin before Jack chimed in with, "No, I cannot."

Now that that was over with they set about the important mission of locating the king, starting with using the printer the triplets had developed to make mass copies of his wanted poster for distribution.

"It a perfect copy! That's incredible," the blonde looked on in wonder at the technology. Merlin then took control of the printing process, "Wow, this will definitely make it easier to find your king!"

"Unfortunately, this thing ain't flying," Noki patted the robots leg. "It's grounded," emphasized Kio. The blonde looked at them in confusion."Why do we need it to fly?"

"The posters are no good if we can't distribute them fast."

Her heart melted at their thoughtfulness. What did she do o deserve such friends? "You guys! Thank you so much for everything you've done," she brought the triplets into a group hug before grunting tore her gaze from them to Merlin who was trying to pry the magic broom from the trunk. A smile slowly grew on her face as she realized what he was thinking. It was utter genius!

After freeing the broom and making the suitable adjustments to the robot, Merlin and Cinderella were air born on the new machine. They had attached the broom to the back of the robot to give it flight, and currently the two were sitting on the broom soaring past the house. They had also installed a leaver so that when ready they could spin it and posters would fall to the ground out of a slot.

Cinderella was enjoying herself, the wind whipping in her face and through her hair gave her a feeling of freedom. The same could not be said for Merlin who had his eyes squinted shut and was hanging on to the broomstick for dear life. 

As they rounded the cliff to come across the house, she waved down to the others, some giving a halfhearted wave while Jack and Arthur were obviously envious of Merlin. The robot then bounded to the side, coming above a blue river. The nose came down to skim the water and the blonde stuck her hand out to feel the mist. When would she get the chance to do this again?

They then came up around a series of rocky cliffs and mountains before exiting the patch and flying above the the flower patch from two days ago with the King's likeness still written in the flowers. 

Noticing Merlin shaking like a leaf in front of her, Cinderella smiled to herself before scooting forward and wrapping her arms around his waist, his tension releasing as they ascended into the clouds. The girl stuck her arms out to the sides as she stared in wonder of the white expanse.

When they reached the castle of Prince Average, the pulled the leaver to release a wave of posters, the two turning to each other and laughing at the sight. Once they passed through Golden Goose Avenue, it had turned into a more leisurely ride.

Staring at the person in front of her however, Cinderella couldn't help but notice where they were. Alone in the clouds, pretty romantic if you asked her. So she decided to try and drop a few hints. "You know I meant what I said last night. I am so glad that I met you!"

"I feel the same way!" he cried out to her before standing up and spreading his arms. "I feel as if anything is possible."His mind yet again began to wander into a fantasy, this time he firmly imagined a scenario of a human him and Cinderella flying through the air together. They were both standing with him in front, arms raised to the sides, and her arms around his waist from behind. The human him turned to face and and just as the two went in for a kiss, a familiar feminine voice brought him out of this trance.

"Merlin! Watch out!" When his eyes refocused he let out a desperate scream as they collided into a patch of trees. The two were thrown from the robot and were hanging onto a branch for dear life before it snapped sending them both to the ground, knocking the wizard out.

"Merlin." a soft voice called out. "Merlin. Merlin!" This snapped him awake in a flash as he found himself clinging to Cinderella's arm. "Everything okay," she asked hesitantly. 

"Of course, sure," he quickly hopped off as they both sure. "Nothing to be embarrassed about so why are we even talking about that when we should be going...this direction." He pointed forward hoping it would lead somewhere as she ran to catch up.

About ten minutes later they were still walking down a trail by a river, and Cinderella realized now might be as good a time as any to explain her shoes to them. "So about these shoes.."

"What, are they still bothering you. What type of magic do those shoes have," he looked down before finally realizing what they were made of. "Wait are they...made of glass!"

She nervously chuckled before nodding her head. "Yep, and their honestly really comfortable. But as for what they do I'm really not sure. But I never told you how I got them."

"Well I'm all ears. Fire away."

"Here goes nothing." "Back when I was at the palace, Snow White and I had suspected her step-mother, Regina of being a witch. One night we went to investigate her office and we found a tree with red shoes growing on them. Snow picked them and right as Regina walked in, I grabbed the shoes from Snow and told her to run. I put them on for safekeeping and they turned into glass. After I escaped and you guys found me. Now she's probably after me for them."

"That's...a lot," he told her as they chuckled. "Do you think you could just give them back."

She shook her head. "Absolutely not. I still don't know what these shoes are capable of and the last thing I'd want is for them to turn out to be powerful and be in her clutches. Besides, I don't think forgiveness is a word in her vocabulary."

He simply nodded and continued to walk. Was that it. Did he really have so much faith in her that he could just accept it. Running forward to catch up with him, an idea came to mind. "Merlin, I'd like to give you a token of my appreciation. Could I maybe have one of your spells?"

"Why?" he asked with a humorous skepticism. "Oh come on, I'm not gonna zap you," She pleaded. Eventually he forked over a spell card, Cinderella taking it in her hands and walking over to a nearby log to work her magic. "Give me a sec."

Merlin followed her as she sat down, her hands twiddling with the card as he tried to peak. She looked at him knowing he was trying to look and he averted his eyes and whistled. Eventually she had finished, but not before placing a kiss on the token. She took his hand and placed the now folded heart in it. "There. Consider it your good luck charm."

Merlin picked up the little gift in his hand a admired it, along with the girl who had crafted it. "Thank you." However when she turned her head to look at the lake, he kissed the paper hoping a second hand kiss might count. 

Off in her own world however, a storm was brewing in Cinderella's mind. The thought of human Merlin invading her thoughts again, challenging her self worth. Would he still feel the same when he was normal. When he had the world at his fingertips and girls throwing themselves at him. He after all was...that's right. She had forgotten until now a very important detail in regards to the F7. The were all princes. Great, another thing working against her. As if him being hero didn't lower her chances, him being royalty smashed them to ground level. Sure he seemed like he returned her feelings now, she truly believed him there, but what was to stop him from turning the other direction in the future.

"Merlin," her voice called him back from is attempts to kiss the paper heart. "Do you think you'd be...happier if you were your old self again?"

"Yup," he responded simply. "Definitely, I would."

"Really? I kinda like how we are. Right here. Right now."

"Even if i'm," he then contorted his face and voice to mimic Prince Average. "an ugly green monster?"

She laughed at the act. "I don't care about your height, or what color you are. That's how you feel about me, right?"

"Of course," he replied instantly, without hesitation. This lifted Cinderella's spirits a little as she turned to face him. "Good, so do I." 

When their eyes connected however, something different was there from the thousand or so times they had before. More emotion, more care, more...love. Slowly, Cinderella began to lean down, her eyes slowly shutting. "This is it. I know I like him. Maybe a even...love him."

On the flip side, thanks to her absence of sight, Merlin had reverted to his human self, eyes wide at the girl before him. Was this real? Was it finally happening? What a good day to break a curse! He started to lean in as well, eyes shutting and repeating what she had thought just a moment ago. "This is it. I think...no, I know I love this girl."

However just as their lips were about to connect when suddenly a roar let out behind them. They jumped up and turned around to see a bark-like monster rampaging towards them. At this point Merlin was so fed up he couldn't take it any more. Not only would he have to take care of this guy, but their kiss had been interrupted and he was still a dwarf. So he did the only logical action; he screamed at the thing.

"You have got to be kidding me!"


	8. cards on the table

The two looked on in horror at the wooden monstrosity knocking down tree's in a blind rage in front of them. It was only when it smashed the log they had been sitting on did Merlin shout "Run!" and grabbed Cinderella's hand, tugging her off to the side where they broke into a dead sprint. 

Unfortunately, not only did it give chase, but it did so at an impressive pace. "What is that?" she asked as they ran, coming to a tree trunk that sloped down towards the river. "This kingdom has got a serious monster problem," he yelled back as they slid down the trunk, only for the monster to step on it, effectively sending them flying.

The pair landed on a rocky surface only to go sliding downwards, but just as it looked like they were about to collide with a stone, they fell down into a crevice in the ground. "You alright?" Cinderella asked him to which he responded with a simple "No," and much painful groaning as he walked forward on wobbly feet. 

Merlin eventually climbed to the top and offered a hand to help her out. "Thank you," she grunted as she came to stand. "Pleasure m'lady," he responded but the two walked forward only to immediately recoil as a wall was revealed to be the bark monster. 

It reached down a hand to grab them, but they successfully dodged and began to run upwards, before a second monster blocked their path. In retaliation, Merlin sent a bolt of lighting at it's leg, the creature loosing it's balance and falling...in their direction!

They instantly bolted the other direction and as the second monster flew above their heads, it collided with the first.

The two let their guard down, sharing a victorious high five and Merlin jumping up before a THIRD monster came from the woods, causing Cinderella and Merlin to take off again with three on their tails.

"What do they want besides smashing us?" Merlin asked as they ran.

"My best guess would be my shoes!" She responded, picking up her pace. Hey, she could only go so fast in heels.

As they continued running, Merlin noticed a stack of rocks that could easily become a rock slide, and he took aim with a lighting bolt, however it barely made a dent. "The old me would have nailed that!"

He spook to soon, as the monster trailing behind had an outpouring of rocks come down onto him, sending him over the cliff into the waters below. Merlin looked on in both amazement and disbelief as he ran backwards."You just got Merlined!" This turned into a scream however as one of the monsters sent a rock flying towards them, it colliding with the earth in front of them, missing the two by a hair.

They stood for a second in shock, before Merlin got up and ran around. "Hurry!" The two remaining threats continued to fling projectiles at them, the two somehow always dodging but at the expense of being ending up at the far end of the path. Seeing only one way out, the wizard ran up to the blonde. "Cinderella, close your eyes. Trust me!"

Instantly obeying, the girl sealed her eyes shut, Merlin transforming into a human and destroying the boulder that was about to hit them. "That was to close."

Cinderella went to turn around but the wizard grabbed her arm and pulled her away so they were back to back. "Don't look at me," his eyes then scanned the area and found and opening. "You see that tree on the other side of the bridge?"

"Yeah."

"On my signal, run towards it as fast as you can and don't look back."

Her eyes widened and her heart clenched at that. "What! No I can't leave you again!"

"You have to, please," he assured her. "Look right at that tree until I say it's safe. Promise you won't look."

"I promise," she said, following his instructions and locking her eyes on the tree. After a few tense moments he gave her the signal. "Now," and Cinderella darted forward, never looking back as much as she wanted to. As much as she worried for him though, she knew she had to put her trust in Merlin.

Looking back to make sure she was running, Merlin smirked at the monster and pulled out two spell cards and jumping into action. He ran forward and punched his hands together, using the momentum to jump high into the air and strike down the monster furthest to the back, only for the first one to punch him, sending him over the edge.

As he was falling, Merlin sent a stream of lighting up towards the monster, it tightening around his leg and allowing the prince to swing up and over, come up in front of the first one, and strike it down. 

The second one was still standing however, and as it went to swing downwards at him, the wizard successfully dodged and wound up sitting on the head of the other monster. Number 2 went to punch him again only to hit number one square in the face and send him over the cliff, Merlin now standing on number 2's head. He leaned over it's forehead to look into it's eyes taunting, "You just got Merlined. Yes, you did."

It clapped it's hands over it's head hoping to squash the wizard, who leaped away in the nick of time and clasped his hands together activating the spell cards he had planted on the monster's back, electrocuting it. 

Merlin walked away feeling victorious before the hand of number 2 came up behind him and smashed him into the stone wall, the man letting out a grunt of pain. The monster simply walked forward towards where Cinderella was and Merlin quickly gathered his spell cards. One thing he would not stand for was he thought of the blonde beauty he was in love with in danger.

"Hey, blockhead it's me!" He yelled after it. "Your even more of a blockhead then Prince Average!"

The monster then turned around and let out a cry of, "A-Vu-Rauge," Merlin standing terrified at this revelation. "Prince Average?" The newly known blonde prince swung his fist down at the wizard, who ran up the appendage, onto it's head, and back-flipped off onto the ground, his spell cards floating down around him. 

His plan in place, Merlin snapped his fingers, a ball of lighting igniting in his hand as he smashed it on the ground, all the cards charging with electricity causing the stone bridge to crumble, taking Average down with it. The wizard simply crossed his arms and repeated it catchphrase, "You just got Merlined," before walking away to face Cinderella.

"Take a look, Cinderella," he gave her the okay as she quickly whipped around with a smile. "Merlin," she cried out with relief. "I have triumphantly saved the day," he announced before a large, bark hand ensnared him in it's clutches and dragged him down into the watery depths together.

Cinderella looked on in horror as the man she maybe loved fell, her running frantically to the edge screaming, "Merlin! No!"

Making a split-second decision, she leaped off the cliff and dove into the water, looking around rapidly before she found the prince trapped under a boulder. She swam down to him, grasping his arms as she tried to tug him free. He looked up at her desperately before his brown eyes closed and bubbles rose to the surface from his loss of air.

The blonde looked on in horror and dread as her tugging intensified. "If only Snow were here," she inwardly cried, as she frantically twisted her head before her eyes landed on a large rock. She swam over to it and picked it up, shimming it under the boulder to act as a leverage point. Eventually side of the boulder Merlin was under lifted up, allowing Cinderella to grab his arms and tug him to the surface.

Taking almost no time to absorb air when she broke water, she swam to the lakeside, dragging herself and Merlin to the shore and collapsing in exhaustion and relief. 

This was short lived as when she heard a chorus of gasps ahead of her, the blonde lifted her head to see Regina's three bear servants. "Cinderella!" the gasped. However, the events of the day soon caught up with the girl as her eyes lulled and she fell unconscious. 

The three little bears and the wooden bunny, who had come running after witnessing the explosions from uphill lifted the pair and dragged them away from the water, unaware they were being watched.

*******

Back at White Castle, Regina was on the cusp of exploding. She gazed into the mirror where Cinderella's soaked likeness shown to her. "That little ingrate!" She screeched. "How dare she interfere! It's was one thing to have stolen my shoes, but now thanks to her my entire plan could fall apart!" 

The queen then snatched her purple cloak and donned it, pulling the hood up. "Your going after her?" the mirror asked.

"What? were you planning to?" She retorted as the mirror broke out in laughter, Regina walking away. Her plan may yet be salvaged.

*******

It had been half an hour since Merlin and Cinderella had woken up and the sky was alright pitch dark. They were currently sitting dry on a log in front of a built fire, the three bears and bunny sleeping in a pile behind them.

"I was scared I had lost you, when you went into the water." Cinderella suddenly said quietly. Merlin turned his head and was surprised to see tears dangling from her eyes and before he could blink she had engulfed him in a hug. "I thought I'd never see you again!" she cried.

All Merlin could do was wrap his arms around her in turn and mumble, "But you didn't. I'm here."

After crying for a few solid minutes, the blonde retracted from the hug, dried her eyes, and lightly smiled at him. "Thank you for being here for me."

Although stunned for a few moments at the sheer amount of gentleness in her eyes, Merlin smiled back and responded with, "And I, you"

A thought then occurred to the girl, a surefire way to know his intentions. She would tell him.

"I know." She said cryptically.

"Know what?"

"I know..that you and the others are the Fearless Seven."

A look of shock washed over his face as he softly asked, "How?"

"It really wasn't that hard. The weapons you use and the same names. It didn't take me too long. And before you ask, no I don't see you differently." 

He let out a sigh of relief at this, now all barriers were gone. But before he could say anything, she said something that left his breathing shallow. "All I want to know is...how did you end up like this. The truth please."

Reluctantly swallowing, he begun the tale of how the F7 had gotten cursed. "It was about a year ago. We had been called into a kingdom to defeat a dragon and save a princess. We did just that, but when we met the princess we mistook her for a witch and sort of...attacked her. As punishment she cursed us to take on these forms whenever someone looked at us, while we would become normal when no one looked at us. The only way to break the curse was...to receive a kiss from the most beautiful woman in the world. When we met you, we knew it was you. But I can assure you," he reached over to clutch her hand, he blue eyes expanding widely. "I do have feelings for you. I just thought I might have more a chance of you returning them if i was my old self."

When he had finished his explanation, although shocked, Cinderella's face bloomed a scarlet red at the implications. "Th..that's what you think of me? The most beautiful woman in the world?"

"Yes," he said, his face also turning red. "You are." But he was most surprised when she turned her head and shook. "I don't think so. In fact, I think you deserve someone better then me."

"W..What do you mean? Have you seen yourself? Your perfect!"

She smiled lightly but it was overtaken by her forlorn look as she gazed directly at him. "That's not what I mean. What I'm trying to say is when you boil it down I'm not the sort of person whom you should be with. Your a prince for crying out loud, and you have hundreds of beautiful girls throwing themselves at you. And while I do feel the same way, I'm a servant girl with no dowry and no family. Smart match, don't you think," she snorted at the last part.

What she didn't expect to happen was for the prince in question to grasp her hand and turn her head downwards to face him. "You think I care about any of that?" he said looking up at her with a smile. "I may have once, but when you came into my life that got thrown out the window. This curse was the best thing to ever happen to me because I knocked some sense into me! I really don't care where you come from because I know who you are. Your a beautiful, smart, kind, and hardworking girl that frankly I don't deserve."

Her face then adorned a serious look as she stared into his soul. "Tell me truly, do you mean that." He nodded swiftly and responded, "Yes."

She simply clutched his hand and without warning, he let out a string of chuckles. "What?" she asked confused. "I just can't believe you feel the same way! Ah, the others are going to be so mad at me for, I kid you not, 'stealing you away from them'." 

"They really think that?" Cinderella asked, shaking her head in amusement. He nodded vigorously. She smiled and scooted forward and a blush ignited on both of their faces, and the energy they felt by the river earlier came back. Once again the two were leaning in, but alas, the universe had other plans. 

"Well isn't this sweet."

The two instantly snapped away from each other and stood, Cinderella adopting a look of horror on her face as she took a step back. "Regina?"

"In the flesh," she sauntered up to them. "You know little Cindy, I'm sure Snow has been missing you."

"What have you done to her," the blonde growled. No one messed with her friend.

"Oh relax, honey. Nothing...yet." The queen smirked as her eyes landed on the slippers. "And I can promise It will stay that way if you hand over the shoes."

"Never," Cinderella's gaze narrowed. "I know you well enough to realize she'll wind up hurt anyway."

Regina simply raised her shoulder and arms up in a joking manner. "Well, you got me." She then took notice of Merlin and dissolved into a fit of laughter. "Oh, you little minx, you've been busy since you've left."

"Touch her and your done for," Merlin said as he pulled out to spell cards. The queen simply signed and smirked. "Well, looks like I'll be doing this the hard way."

Then faster the the eye could see, she shot forward and enveloped Cinderella in her cloak, both of them vanishing into thin air.

"Cinderella!" Merlin cried out. Wasting no time, he climbed on the wooden bunny's back as he had woken during the commotion. He knew one thing, he wouldn't loose her without a fight.

"Come on long ears, let's go."

"Hey, wait for us," the three little bears called to him from the ground. "How about you go back and get the others, and make lot's of copies of this," he handed them a spell card. And with that, he rode the bunny forward towards the White Castle.

*******

At the castle, Regina came out of the portal falling to the ground, Cinderella unconscious next to her.

"Your power my lady," the mirror spoke. "It has drained you."

"You think," she growled. "I don't need you to tell me how I look."

"I'm a mirror! It's what I do. M--i-r-o-r. Sorry, I can't spell." 

"Enough. Bind her," Regina cast her gaze over to Cinderella on the ground, and smirked. "It's supper time."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So we finally reach the climax next chapter and I'm super excited to write it. Please comment as this was one of my favorite chapters to write and I always love to hear what people think. Thanks-Lulu


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